Columnist Christopher Matthews. His first book, Hardball: How Politics is Played, is a humorous, anecdotal account of the 24-hour struggle for power and position that politicians happily immerse themselves in. The book has been described as a modern version of The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli. Matthews is a former speechwriter to President Jimmy Carter and senior aide and spokesman to former Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill.
Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Brothers For Life, the new album by saxophonist Earl Turbinton. Like many New Orleans jazz musicians, Turbinton moves between work in jazz and rhythm and blues. He's worked with musicians as diverse as blues guitarist B.B.King and Joe Sawinul, the founder of the fusion band Weather Report.
Frank Robinson, manager of the Baltimore Orioles. In 1975, he became the first black manager in baseball, and today he is the only one. As a player, Robinson was legendary. He is the only player ever to win the Most Valuable Player award in both leagues; and his 586 home runs place him behind Hand Aaron, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays on the all-time list.
Critic-at-Large Laurie Stone looks at the dance and choreography of Mark Morris, the young (31) Seattle dancer and choreographer who is one of the most commissioned and sought-after dancers in America and Europe.
Journalist Teresa Carpenter. Her new book, Missing Beauty, is the story of the obsession of a medical professor for a Boston prostitute, and obsession that ended with the prostitute's murder. Carpenter is a staff writer for The Village Voice and won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for her reports on three murders, including those of former congressman Allard Lowenstein and Playmate Dorothy Stratten.
Film Critic Stephen Schiff reviews "Big," a fantasy about body switching starring Tom Hanks and Elizabeth Perkins and veteran character actor Robert Loggia.
Writer Gerald Clarke. Clarke's biography of writer Truman Capote has just been published. Capote was the author of the seminal work In Cold Blood, but his writing was overshadowed by the excesses of his lifestyle and his reputation as the clownish fixture of the talk show circuit. Clarke's biography was 14 years in the making and was undertaken with Capote's full cooperation. Clarke has written extensively for Time magazine.
Film director Paul Morrissey. He first gained fame as the alter ego of pop artist Andy Warhol during the filming of Warhol's low-budget experimental films like "My Hustler" and "Chelsea Girls." He later directed Warhol-produced films like "Flesh" and "Trash." Morrissey's latest film is titled "Beethoven's Nephew," and is the story of disarray of the composer's private life and his ugly personality. The music is performed by The Vienna Symphony Orchestra.
Actress Patricia Charbonneau. She now stars in two films: the cop/action film "Shakedown," and the erotic thriller "Call Me," about a writer who responds the wrong way to an obscene phone call. Charbonneau's previous roles include the lesbian who seduces a college professor in "Desert Hearts," an independent film based on a novel by Jane Rule. Charbonneau also has a recurring role as Inger Thornson in the NBC television series "Crime Story."
Writer and humanitarian Elie Weisel. Weisel won the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize for his message of "peace and atonement and human dignity." A concentration camp survivor, he has been the most impassioned and poetic supporter of efforts to memorialize the six million Jews who died in Hitler's death camps. He is author of 24 works, including Night and Dawn. His latest work, a novel, is titled Twilight.
Wiesel, who died July 2, was one of the first survivors to devote his life to bearing witness to the Holocaust. He was the author of many books, including Night. Originally broadcast in 1988.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews the new EMI/Angel series titled "Great Recordings of the Century," vintage recordings that have been digitally remastered.
Journalist David Wise. His new book, The Spy Who Got Away, is the story of Edward Lee Howard, the CIA agent who divulged secrets to the Russians and then eluded an FBI dragnet to flee to the Soviet Union. The book is based on six days of interviews with Howard in Budapest and reveals a CIA coverup of suspicions about Howard's character and the agency's refusal to share the information with the FBI's counterintelligence division. Wise, a former Washington bureau chief for the New York Herald Tribune, has written extensively on espionage.
Rock historian Ed Ward profiles "The Flamin' Groovies," a band that fought all the trends in the late 60s by putting out three-minute pop songs with anti-drug lyrics. Their best-known song was "Teenage Head."
Rock musician Joan Jett. Since 1979, Jett has led the group Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and earned the description as "the toughest, grittiest, hardest-working woman in rock and roll." She won praise for her film debut in 1987 when she co-starred with Michael J. Fox in the film "Light of Day." Time magazine's film critic Richard Corliss hailed her "mesmerizing surliness" and said Jett's presence dominated every scene she was in. Joan Jett and the Blackheart's new album is titled "Up Your Alley."
Natan, formerly Anatoly, Sharansky. He was jailed on trumped up treason and spying charges by the KGB and endured nine years of solitary confinement and a starvation diet before an international campaign forced his release two years ago. His account of his ordeal and the subsequent pressures of celebrity are recounted in his book Fear No Evil.
Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Evening Star," the new album from guitarist Joshua Breakstone. Though Breakstone is 32 years old, his style is rooted in the 1940s.
